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I'm still working on the bonus pieces at the back of book 1. It seems like those 6 pieces will take more time than the rest of book! They are fun to play though, and I'm adding "over the rainbow" to my limited repertoire (if I can use such a grandiose word to describe a few simple pieces from a method book )

Of all those bonus pieces, Over the Rainbow is the only one of which I put in any considerable effort. I enjoy how this arrangement sounds. It's presents a nice piece with introductory pedalling.

The only other piece of interest to me is The Entertainer. However, it is one of my ultimate goals to be able to perform the original Joplin version, so the level 1 arrangement felt flat to me. I'll just wait until I can play the real deal. It's in my Yamaha "50 greats" book, so I am prepared for that day.

I've looked at and played a little of The Entertainer from Alfred's. I also am booked on the Joplin recital to do The Entertainer. Easy A Part. As part of this. I've fooled around with another harder version and the Original. So I'm working on it.

I'd say the version in Alfred's is like all the other versions of Alfred's. There is something in there to teach you technically. It leans that direction and sacrifices musicality. Which I actually think is good. One is there to learn.

I had a talk with my teacher about where to go after Alfreds 1 and we decided that it would be good to continue with Alfreds 2. The music choices maybe aren't the greatest, but I don't find that a huge drawback. I like the steady progression the method books give.

I have no issue with the piece selection in book 2. I find that each piece has its reason for being in the books, and the series has not let me down yet.

I am convinced that I would not be where I am today without the Alfred books. They seem to be the ideal progression for the adult self-learner. I have learned quite a bit from the teacher I began seeing when I started book 2, but one can certainly get through book 1 alone and come out proficient.

Thanks for the warm welcome ajames and earlofmar! And thanks for the useful tip ajames. I've been active on several other forums for years and years, and have never thought of such a clever method of skimming through / searching in a long thread!

Thanks for the warm welcome ajames and earlofmar! And thanks for the useful tip ajames. I've been active on several other forums for years and years, and have never thought of such a clever method of skimming through / searching in a long thread!

I think I spend more time at this forum actually in old posts which will usually answer any question I have. It is a remarkable resource

Problems with piano are 90% psychological, the other 10% is in your head.

Welcome new folks! Piano is a lifetime of adventure and we're glad to talk about it...obviously as you can see on PW. People who don't play have no interest (REALLY no interest) in talking about what you're playing or struggling with but we have this haven on PW where we can babble away about every nuance of our obsession with piano. My teacher starts everyone on Alfred I think...we used the regular series of 6 levels and I still pull them out occasionally just to play some favorites. Kind of like sight reading but some recessed memory in there. I've picked 10 pieces from the hundreds I've played but never committed totally to memory as repertoire for the year. My goal is to have them at play-ready for the whole year so that when someone insists "play for us" , I have something that would sound reasonably proficient. Those of you in Alfred could do the same thing...keep those pieces that you like fresh and perform-able. Snowing here...need coffee and piano time.

Today I started learning O Sole Mio with the words "Just one cornetto, give it to me" playing in my head! It sounded terrible when I followed the pedal markings. But I worked out my own way of using the pedal that I think worked well. I got the notes down, but will probably take a couple more practice session before I can play the whole thing without mistakes. Also the same wth Jericho. There is a natural G note in Jericho, that I found unusual as the rest of the song is using the A harmonic minor scale.

These pieces are not much fun at all. I enjoyed learning Little Brown Jug the other day. I also looked ahead to book two and roughly learned the first page of the La Bamba one (not sure on spelling), which was a lot more fun. I can't wait for book two!

Right now at "Joy for the World", page 123, a nice surprise when I turned the page today.

Tomorrow it's the 12 day of Xmas, Epiphany. 6th of January.

In Spain we celebrate this day as the Tres Reyes Magos (3 Wise Men (Magi) giving presents to baby Jesus, so we used to exchange presents that day instead of the 25th. I didn't have Santa or even a Christmas tree as a kid as it is a pagan tradition and Spain was quite different then, but now we really share presents both days. At the end of the day, celebrating the 25th of December was just chosen for its pagan importance, so it's just normal that other traditions converge.

So still good to play a Xmas song tomorrow... and have some Roscon de Reyes for breakfast right after exchanging presents and have some turron in the afternoon too, of course!

All decorations to go on Tuesday. I always feel sad when I have to put everything back to boxes.

In Spain we celebrate this day as the Tres Reyes Magos (3 Wise Men (Magi) giving presents to baby Jesus, so we used to exchange presents that day instead of the 25th. I didn't have Santa or even a Christmas tree as a kid as it is a pagan tradition and Spain was quite different then, but now we really share presents both days. At the end of the day, celebrating the 25th of December was just chosen for its pagan importance, so it's just normal that other traditions converge.

So still good to play a Xmas song tomorrow... and have some Roscon de Reyes for breakfast right after exchanging presents and have some turron in the afternoon too, of course!

All decorations to go on Tuesday. I always feel sad when I have to put everything back to boxes.

That's a nice way to celebrate Christmas. Interesting to read. Like reading about those who actually celebrate Christmas as Christmas. All the Sante Claus and stuff just fits in with the rest of society. Like how food has gone to fast food and energy drinks and... it's all just edible food like substances. It's not even real food.

I put up decorations for the outside for everyone to see. Patronize them and making the season happy. I have a little tree. Put it in a window. Decorate the window side of it with lights and such to look nice. The back of it which I face. It is decorated with candy canes and notes. The canes, and notes were from free lunches at day labor. Written by children at a church school who packed the lunches. My own personal celebration of what is really important. In short....society celebrates receiving at Christmas. I like to celebrate giving. Because Christmas is the time where mankind received the greatest gift of all. And mankind killed it.

Hi all, I just started to use Alfred all in one adult book level 1 to self learn piano. I used to play some Trombone back in high school day but I long to be able to play piano and so at age 34, here I am. I figure since I am a beginner, if I put in the time and effort I can only get better.

My question is what is your practice routine? Just do the all in one book? Add other practice? Scale? How muh time each day?

Hi claiz, welcome. I started with Alfred Book 1 last January. My quick advise here would be to concentrate on Book 1 for now. Work a few pieces at a time. Try to grasp the concept that each piece focuses on. Take your time. For the most part, I practice in several sessions throughout the day. You will need to find what works for you. Once you get through some of the book you can look into supplemental material. There are alot of options depending on your interests. Read through this thread (I know its long) but there is a ton of useful information.

Good luck to you!

Kawai MP11 : JBL LSR305 : Focusrite 2i4 : Pianoteq Standard

We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams. Willy Wonka

Well, with life getting in the way, it took me about a year from my first post here to get my keyboard but I picked up a used Yamaha P95 in great shape and I just received my Alfred Adult All in One Level 1 course and I have a teacher lined up to start giving me lessons in a few weeks. Whew, that was one long sentence!

I'm 54 years old, brand new to the piano but have about 6-7 years on guitar under my belt. I know very little guitar theory other than basic chord constructs and I'm looking forward to learning a little music theory on the piano and blending in the theory between piano and guitar. Anyway just wanted to say hello and introduce myself to the thread.

Welcome Claiz... Definitely work through what you have in Alfred's first. That is most important. Then, whatever you want. Also...it's very important to practice often. The amount of time is not important. At least once a day. Some have come up with using a timer to limit practice to 15 minutes. Helps to keep one focused. At least take a little break. Then resume if you want. I find the timer helpful for grabbing little practice times here and there. Gee... it's only 15 minutes. I can practice that much before I do this and that and whatever.

Welcome Rob.... I think you'll find all the theory you need for guitar from piano. Then guitar is just technical how to do it. Don't get discouraged when you get to about page 50 and you slow way down. The playing both hands is a major undertaking.

I have been playing for a few months now and have mastered chiapanecas. Have skipped a few songs here and there, ones I just find uninteresting. Tend to learn two songs from Alfreds at once and have a repertoire of maybe seven Alfred songs I can play without the music in front of me. I practise nearly everyday but have noticed if I miss a day or two I can come back stronger on the songs I am currently learning. I really like Alfreds book one. I purchased it because it was popular on these forums.

Got to The Entertainer in All In One today. Worked on it hands separate for 30 minutes after messing with Joy To The World for 15 minutes. Tried playing The Entertainer hands together could not. The songs are getting really syncopated and there is more hand independence needed. Happy after new years everybody.

I feel like I am missing the music appreciation of these songs without a teacher. Why is The Entertainer the ice cream truck song? Like these songs versus modern music on the radio. All I can do is listen because I never hear what they're about through word of mouth. I need some cool friends. I guess that is what a teacher is for.

Have skipped a few pages and gone straight from chiapanecas to the entertainer which I have been practising for over a week now. Aim to play it for my quarterly recital. The songs I missed I will probably go back and learn afterwards. Would love to play the full version of entertainer it's a classic. Am well enjoying playing and thinking of getting lessons.

I have enjoyed a few more than I expected, including:The EntertainerLauraAt Last

Just need to get past Have Yourself a Very Merry Christmas and two more. (Did I see Gilligan's Island? Hope not.) Then my teacher wants to start on some Bach. Not sure I'm ready for that but I've been doing Hanon's for a while, although slowly. I'm sure it will be the dumbed-down version of Bach!